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User blog:Killermoves/Terrors of the Old West: Chief Joseph vs Clay Allison
A year of playing Red Dead Redemption 2 has inspired me to write my own Western story. And why not? The Old West has been an era filled with great stories of brave warriors living in an unforgiving frontier, forced to survive from the elements and even against each other. This is why the Old West was known as the "Wild West" for a reason. And in crafting my tale, I have decided to pit two of the most iconic Wild West characters: the savage noble Indian vs the quick-drawing cowboy gunfighter! And when it comes to cowboys and indians, only two names pop as the perfect foil for each other! Chief Joseph: The peaceful Nez Perce chief forced to lead a large exodus of his people on one of the greatest Indian wars in history! vs Clay Allison: The crazy rancher and gunslinger who rallied his mob to fight for their land in one of the bloodiest range wars in history! '' '' WHO IS DEADLIEST?!! Chief Joseph Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt, popularly known as Chief Joseph (March 3, 1840 – September 21, 1904), was a leader of the Wal-lam-wat-kain (Wallowa) band of Nez Perce, a Native American tribe of the interior Pacific Northwest region of the United States, in the latter half of the 19th century. When his father died in 1871, Joseph was elected to succeed him. He inherited not only a name but a situation made increasingly volatile as white settlers continued to arrive in the Wallowa Valley. Joseph staunchly resisted all efforts to force his band onto the small Idaho reservation, and in 1873 a federal order to remove white settlers and let his people remain in the Wallowa Valley made it appear that he might be successful. But the federal government soon reversed itself, and in 1877 General Oliver Otis Howard threatened a cavalry attack to force Joseph's band and other hold-outs onto the reservation. Believing military resistance futile, Joseph reluctantly led his people toward Idaho. Unfortunately, they never got there. About twenty young Nez Percé warriors, enraged at the loss of their homeland, staged a raid on nearby settlements and killed several whites. Immediately, the army began to pursue Joseph's band and the others who had not moved onto the reservation. Although he had opposed war, Joseph cast his lot with the war leaders. What followed was one of the most brilliant military retreats in American history. Even the unsympathetic General William Tecumseh Sherman could not help but be impressed with the 1,400 mile march, stating that "the Indians throughout displayed a courage and skill that elicited universal praise... they fought with almost scientific skill, using advance and rear guards, skirmish lines, and field fortifications." In over three months, the band of about 700, fewer than 200 of whom were warriors, fought 2,000 U.S. soldiers and Indian auxiliaries in four major battles and numerous skirmishes. By the time he formally surrendered on October 5, 1877, Joseph was widely referred to in the American press as "the Red Napoleon." It is unlikely, however, that he played as critical a role in the Nez Percé's military feat as his legend suggests. Nevertheless, Joseph's widely reprinted surrender speech has immortalized him as a military leader in American popular culture. He was transported between various forts and reservations on the southern Great Plains before being moved to the Colville Indian Reservation in the state of Washington, where he died in 1904. Melee=Spontoon Tomahawk * A tomahawk that has a more triangular ax head which is common among the Crows and the Nez Perce. Typically 2-feet in length and can be thrown. The pipe in the other end can be used as a secondary blunt weapon as well. |-|Short= Indian Short Bow * A short self bow similar to many Plains Indians bow. It is 4 feet in length and uses animal sinews for bow strings. * 50+ yards * Designed to be used in both foot and on horseback. Typically for speed rather than range and accuracy. |-|Long= Winchester Model 1866 * A common weapon for the Nez Perce and Joseph's most favored rifle. * This Winchester model is chambered for the .44 Henry rimfire in a 16-shot tubular magazine. It also has a 100 yard range and a muzzle velocity of 343 m/s. It is well-known for its brass/bronze receiver compared to other winchester rifles. |-|Tactics=Fighting Retreat * Since Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce were constantly on the run and on the defensive against the U.S. Army who were chasing them, they had to rely on guerrilla warfare to try and slow their pursuers down. * Chief Joseph used this in great effect during the Battle of Cottonwood in July 3–5, 1877. In order to make sure that their families can cross the Salmon River, the Nez Perce had to stop the soldiers chasing them led by Captain Stephen Whipple. Joseph did this by moving his warriors to the rear of the enemy's position before ambushing them. The constant rifle fire pinned down the soldiers, and allowed the other Nez Perce to cross safely and unmolested. The warriors soon retreated, leaving 11 soldiers and 6 civilian volunteers dead. It took a while before the army can mount up another chase. Clay Allison Robert Clay Allison (September 2, 1841 – July 3, 1887) was a cattle rancher, former Confederate soldier, and one of the most notorious gunfighter of the American Old West. Allison epitomized the classic image of the gunslinger in today's popular culture: the lone skilled gunman who wandered to a desolate town and forced to defend its townsfolk against the rich and powerful bullies, very iconic in films such as Shane and Magnificent Seven. Clay Allison started his violent life when he enlisted twice in the Confederate Military during the American Civil War, serving both in the Army and in the Cavalry. He served in Captain W. H. Jackson's artillery battery and in the 9th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment under the infamous Confederate "Wizard of the Saddle," General Bedford Forrest. After years of battling the Union, he surrendered in Gainesville, Alabama on May 4, 1865, but his violent escapade did not stop there. He escaped his prison by killing a Union guard, at one point going back to his family's land and killing another Union corporal who tried to seize it, and being involved in raids conducted by the Klu Klux Clan. Allison soon retired from bloodshed, albeit temporarily, when he started to operate his own ranching business. He even participated in the iconic Goodnight-Loving Trail through Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado. In 1875 however, while working as a cattleman in New Mexico Allison became entangled in the bloody Colfax County War, between the rich Santa Fe and Maxwell Land Grant group, and the smaller farmers, ranchers and Native Americans over a large piece of land. Clay Allison became one of the leading figures of the settlers, leading his mob and posses in numerous lynchings and shootouts in the county. He was known to have led the hanging of Hispanic gunfighter Cruz Vega and another by the name of Cardenas for the murder of a reverend. He participated in numerous quick-draw shootouts, such as his gunfight with Chunk Colbert in 1874 and Francisco Vega in 1875. In both times his enemies were the first one to draw and aim their pistol, but Allison always managed to draw and fire faster. Besides these, he was also an advocate of resisting the military incursion sent by the Santa Fe. At one point in October 31, 1878, Clay Allison was entangled in a small skirmish with Comanches during the ongoing Texas-Indian War in Wheeler County, Texas. While riding, Clay Allison came upon a small family home being besieged by Indians. After his request for assistance from the U.S. cavalry was denied, he personally collected a group of ranchers an cowboys to mount a rescue party. They charged at the Indians and killed one of them before the rest fled. Clay Allison died on July 3, 1887 in Pecos, Texas not from the result of a gunfight, but because of a wagon accident. Although largely forgotten today, he is known by contamporaries and historians as one of the most dangerous gunmen of his time. Even Wyatt Earp once spoke about him. Melee=Bowie Knife * The knives are 12-inches long, is single edged and has a clip point for penetrating cans or carving flesh. It can also be thrown. Clay Allison himself is a very talented knife fighter, having been through several duels in his lifetime. |-|Short= Colt Frontier Six Shooter * The personal and preferred weapon of Clay Allison based on Charles Edward Chapel's book. * The Colt Six Shooter, also known as the Frontier Model, is chambered for the 44-40 Winchester and has a 6-shot cylinder. It has a 25 to 50 yard range and a 300 m/s muzzle velocity. * It is popular amongst cowboys for its convenience, since Winchester rifles also use the same cartridge as the Colt Frontier. It can be used on horseback, and a former Civil War veteran like Allison and other cowboys would have known to draw and fire one while riding. * Clay Allison himself is considered by Western historians as one of the only few real gunslingers who can do the quickdraw. In two of his most famous gunfights, it was always his enemies who try to draw first, but Allison drew his gun faster and killed them. |-|Long= Winchester Model 1873 * The Gun that Won the West which is very popular in ranches. * Winchester Model 1873 is chambered for the 44-40 Winchester and has a 14-round tubular magazine. It has a range of over 100-200 yards and a muzzle velocity of 379 m/s. It has a smoother and lighter lever action compared to older lever actions like the Henry rifle. |-|Tactics=Quick Draw * As one of the prominent members of the settlers, Clay Allison rallied his men to combat against the gunmen and the soldiers employed by the Maxwell Land Grant and Santa Fe. These resulted in numerous assassinations in the form of mob lynchings and hit-and-run gunfights. And in many of these gunfights, the use of speed and accuracy was key. * Clay Allison's tactics was seen largely in many Skirmishes in the St. James Hotel perpetrated by him or his friends. For example in 1875, Clay Allison was ambushed by gunman Griego in the hotel, but Clay managed to draw and shoot faster. In 1876, Allison's ally Davy Crockett managed to kill three Buffalo Soldiers in one draw in that same hotel. On the same year, Clay Allison and company outdrew and killed one black sergeant and 4 other soldiers in the nearby bar. These shootouts helped in forcing the military to relieve the 9th cavalry off Colfax County by late 1876. X-Factors Physicality= * Chief Joseph: 70 * Clay Allison: 70 In deciding who takes the edge in the physicality department, I had to take into accounts the ailments that each warrior had during their lifetime. Clay Allison was born with a clubbed foot and had a number of injuries he accumulated in the Civil War. Even so he still proved to be a strong man who can run and ride fast. Chief Joseph was not born with any serious defects (from what I know), but he was plagued with malnutrition and the diseases that came after like every other Nez Perce who had to undergo that long trek to Canada. In the end, both had physical weaknesses that really never affected their fighting skills. |-|Training and Experience= * Chief Joseph: 75 * Clay Allison: 95 This I had to give to Clay Allison. Chief Joseph was a great warrior who fought in more battles than Allison but he was mostly passive and on the guard. He rarely rode out with his braves to attack the U.S. cavalry, as it was his younger brother Ollokot who did most of the physical fighting. Joseph served mostly as an on-camp strategist rather than a frontline commander. Clay Allison had no such qualms when it comes to combat. He rode out and faced his enemies face to face. And unlike Chief Joseph who is stucked mostly in fighting the U.S. Army and a few Indian opponents, Clay Allison fought the Union in the Civil War, bandits and mercenaries during Colfax County War, and Comanches during a brief stint in the Texas-Indian War. Not to mention the other numerous shootouts that he had with fellow gunfighters. |-|Mental Health= * Chief Joseph: 99 * Clay Allison: 60 This was a no-brainer as Chief Joseph has proved to be a more composed person than Allison. He led his men even under great stress and even though the chances of them succeeding were slim. Hell he was still even comfortable enough to make one of the greatest speeches in American history after his final defeat and surrender. Clay Allison on the other hand? Was really fucking crazy. He once beheaded a guy, put it in a sack, and then rode into town naked with it, before trying to put it in a stake. He was again caught naked, this time while dancing an "Indian" war cry around a campfire. These abnormal behavior were said to be caused by a horrific brain injury that he took during the Civil War, and it sure as hell made him one of the most dangerously crazy gunfighters in Old West lore. |-|Resources= * Chief Joseph: 70 * Clay Allison: 85 The big problem with Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce was that they had to live off the land and scavenge whatever weapons they can find. While there is nothing wrong with that in a warfare-standpoint, this still puts him in a disadvantage since his resources are slim and not on par with his opponents. Clay Allison did not have this kind of problem since he and the other ranchers and cowboys were independently wealthy and can afford newer and better firearms. They too are better well-fed and nourished. Read First * Battle takes place in neutral ground, in a large mining camp in the American-Mexican border. Chief Joseph and 4 of his Nez Perce have decided to escape from their reservation again, and accidentally bumped into Clay Allison and 4 of his cowboys during a routine cattle drive. * Each warrior will be on horseback, but will resort to fighting on foot later on. Battle Clay Allison: Chief Joseph: The American-Mexican Border Frontier, late 1870s It was a hot dusty afternoon in the badlands of the Old West. The sun was in its highest peak, the hot winds were blowing from the East, and the large red mountain range towered above the desert landscape. Large rock formations also dotted the sands, and together with the mountains, they formed this large, long and lonely maze-like canyon. Within this maze were hidden oasis, animal bones and dried vegetation that laid in the shade. But besides these, an old steel track that lead to a hole in the mountain ran along the canyon. The tracks and the hole formed an abandoned mining camp, with many digging paraphernalia scattered and buried in the sand. But it wasn’t long before this abandoned mining post wasn’t abandoned no more. Five cowboys came riding into the camp, leaving a huge trail of dust and sand. One of the cowboys was the infamous gunfighter Clay Allison, who actually led the group into this canyon. He dismounted from his horse and stood in awe at the rock formation; looking, listening and soaking carefully his new environment. “Come on boss,” one his cowboys said. “You’ve been tracking them injuns for over two days and now were stuck here in this godforsaken canyon.” Clay Allison only looked at him and smiled a deranged grin. It was true, that these ragtag group of gunmen have taken the job to locate a group of Nez Perce Indians, who were spotted by some settlers from the North. It was a small band who separated from the main tribe when the latter finally gave itself up to the US government. Clay Allison thought it would be a good idea to track those Indians themselves so they can get a reward from the military. And now it seems that they got themselves lost and trapped. But little did they knew that Clay Allison was right. As Clay looked and scanned his surroundings, he puts his hand near his holster and yelled, “I know ya’ll are in here you red-skinned sons of bitches! Grow some tejones and face us like men or I’ll be coming back with the whole US Army!” Suddenly a shot from a rifle rang out from one of the cliffs, hitting one of the cowboys straight in the chest. Then a voice spoke to them, “You should have leaved the place white man. Now you all will be buried here in the sand.” It was Chief Joseph who spoked to them, as he and his men hid themselves in the cliffs. They have been running away from the army for several months now, and they were tired, exhausted and starved in their retreat. And Chief Joseph wasn’t going to let all of these sacrifices they have done go to waste. Even though one of his men was dead and the rest was panicking like little girls, Clay was just smiling as this was the opportunity he’s been waiting for. He then drew his revolver with blinding speed and fired a bullet to where the voice came from. That single bullet hit the cliffs, and the cowboys saw one Indian yell in pain and fell off the canyon and died. The rest of the Indians fled their cover, and as they ran in the open, it gave the cowboys the chance to make a shooting gallery out of them. Another Nez Perce Indian was hit in the knee cap with a rifle shot from a cowboy, and as he stumbled he lost his footing and crashed into the rocks below. (0) Knowing that the Indians had the high ground, Clay Allison told his cowboys to take the best cover they can find. Chief Joseph found another ledge and they laid themselves down. Seeing that the cowboys were have positioned themselves really well and was difficult to shoot from their cover, Joseph signaled to his troops. He told them to lay on their backs and use their bows to start raining arrows on the cowboys. Loads and loads of arrows fell unto the cowboys as they desperately try to dodge them. One of the cowboys was hit in the shoulder, and as he cried in anguish, Chief Joseph saw him and finished him off with a rifle shot to the head. Pissed off, Clay Allison told his men to lay suppressing fire as he crazily started to climb the mountain with his hands. One of the cowboys saw one Indian standing in the open to accurately fire his bow, and this gave him the chance to shoot him straight in the jaw. His body landed on the cliff, with his dead arms flailing over the ledge and blood dripping like a fountain into the sands below. Chief Joseph later scolded the others to be more careful, and they dragged their the dead comrade’s body and laid it on top of their cover, to act as another layer of defense. As the cowboys continued firing to no avail, the Indians were getting momentum as they let out several accurate shots. Another cowboy was killed when he was shot several times in the torso. When the last of Clay Allison’s cowboys saw this, he went mad and made a run for it; desperately trying to escape this valley of death. But the Nez Perce Indians completely riddled him with arrows and rifle shots, and as he fell dead, he looked like a hedgehog with all the arrows sticking him. With the cowboys seemingly dead, the Nez Perce celebrated and let out a war cry. But then two shots were heard from out of nowhere. Chief Joseph noticed his remaining Indians became silent and slowly dropped their weapons. Soon their bodies fell into the ground with all of them having each a bullet hole to chest. Clay Allison came out from the shadows, with his revolver in his hand. He aimed it at Chief Joseph and smiled, before saying, “Any last words, Chief?” “Yes,” Joseph said. “I am tired of running…” In a fast blur, Chief Joseph came towards Allison with a tomahawk drawn. He slashed at Allison’s arm, making him drop his pistol. But instead of yelling in pain like the others, Clay Allison just laughed at his injury. He retaliated by punching Chief Joseph in the jaw, dropping him like a sack of potatoes, before unsheathing his knife and jumping on top of Joseph. With the cowboy on the top and the Indian below, the two struggled as the former tried to stab the latter with his knife. Chief Joseph held unto Clay Allison’s arm for dear life, trying to prevent the madman from pushing his knife unto his chest. During the fight Clay Allison continued laughing as the knife slowly inches towards Chief Joseph’s chest, and actually managed to draw blood as the tip successfully penetrated Joseph. The Chief made one final shout as he used all of his strength to throw Allison off of him before the knife can go deeper. The cowboy was thrown straight out of the cliff, and as he fell, he just continued laughing before finally shutting up when he landed on the rocks below. The once legendary Clay Allison was now slumped on the ground in a pool of his own blood and with his skull completely smashed open. Chief Joseph left no war cry that day. He just laid down in the rocks and gave himself a rest. Deadliest Warrior: Clay Allison Expert’s Opinion Based on the votes below, this was a clear-cut victory for Chief Joseph. While the two are basically tied when it comes to weapons (with the voters having a mixed opinion to mid and long range), what really sealed the deal was Joseph’s better tactics and mental health. Easy to say, Clay Allison was just too crazy to handle Chief Joseph’s more calm approach to combat. Category:Blog posts